Focused Issue of International Journal of Numerical Modelling (Electronic
Networks, Devices and Fields): on Absorbing Boundary Conditions for
Computational Electromagnetics

Absorbing Boundary Conditions (ABC's) are necessary for the numerical solution
of electromagnetic problems formulated on unbounded regions. They are imposed
at the outer edge of the finite-sized computational domain obtained from the
original unbounded domain by truncation. Their main function is to absorb all
waves propagating away from the region of interest while providing boundary
values to complete the interior scheme on the computational domain boundary.
Continuing improvements in the local error of numerical methods have made it
clear that the overall accuracy of a numerical solution of Maxwell's equations
now hinges on the quality of the ABC.

The exact ABC's for frequency- and time-domain problems are nonlocal in space
and time. Local ABC's derived by approximating the exact conditions have been
extensively researched and used ever since the seminal works of Engquist &
Majda (1977) and Bayliss & Turkel (1980). The recent introduction by Berenger
(1994) of the concept of a Perfectly Matched Layer (PML) has shifted the
interest of the Computational Electromagnetics community from local ABC's to
wave absorbing layers for computational domain truncation. Indicative of its
success, the literature on PML is already extensive. This new approach offers
many orders of magnitude reduction of artificial wave reflection over that
afforded by the most successful local ABC's. At the same time, the Applied
Mathematics community has been developing rigorous error analysis and fast
techniques for the implementation of high-order local and exact ABC's thus
removing the main objection against them, i.e., prohibitive computational
overhead.

This issue will focus on progress and new developments in the following
general areas:

Papers on these topics are now sought for this Focused Issue. Review papers
will be welcome, as will papers containing original contributions. Authors are
invited to submit four copies of manuscripts to:

The London Mathematical Society is pleased to announce the first
publication of its new electronic journal:

The LMS JOURNAL OF COMPUTATION AND MATHEMATICS
(ISSN 1461-1570; http://www.lms.ac.uk/jcm/).

The LMS JCM

welcomes original papers on computational aspects of mathematics, papers
on mathematical aspects of computation, and papers that benefit from
electronic publication on grounds of their format
is all-electronic, with main articles screen-readable and downloadable
in pdf format
is a journal of record, carrying a promise from the LMS to maintain
the journal archive into the indefinite future
is fully searchable, with hyperlinks within and between papers
welcomes databases, tables, programs and graphics as add-ons to papers
provides facilities for adding updates and discussion to papers.

All abstracts, and the search engine, are publicly available on the web
at <URL:http://www.lms.ac.uk/jcm/>.
To read or download the main text (in pdf) and associated files of a
paper, either you or your institution must be registered as a
subscriber.

TO SUBSCRIBE (free of cost for the present):

Individuals can subscribe at the journal web page,
<URL:http://www.lms.ac.uk/jcm/>. See the instructions there.
For institutional subscriptions, please contact
Professor Wilfrid Hodges at <W.Hodges@qmw.ac.uk>.

TO SUBMIT A PAPER:

Send it by anonymous ftp, following the instructions at
<URL:http://www.lms.ac.uk/jcm/>.
The main text of any paper submitted must be in LaTeX, preferably
LaTeX2e.
Authors retain copyright in their papers, but are asked to sign over
to the LMS JCM certain non-exclusive rights.

This comprehensive reference work deals with the important details in
the application of the finite element method to incompressible flows.
It addresses the theoretical background and the detailed development
of appropriate numerical methods applied to the solution of a wide
range of incompressible flows. A lucid explanation of the FEM is
combined with extensive coverage of the prototypical fluid mechanics
equation: the advection-diffusion equation. For both this equation
and the equations of principal interest -- the Navier-Stokes equations
-- detailed discussion of both the continuous and discrete equations
is presented, as well as explanations of how to properly march the
time-dependent equations using smart implicit methods. Presentations
of both ODE and DAE solution methods have benefitted from the
significant help of Alan Hindmarsh (LLNL). Boundary and initial
conditions, so important in applications, are carefully described and
discussed, including well-posedness. The important role played by the
pressure, so confusing in the past, is carefully explained.

A multigrid course will be given at the GMD from
Friday 20.11.1998 to Sunday 22.11.1998.
For more information contact joppich@gmd.de or look at the GMD
web-pages
http://www.gmd.de and go to News, upcoming events.
You may also view directly
http://www.gmd.de/SCAI/scicomp/multigrid98.html

The Workshop on Randomization and Approximation Techniques in Computer
Science focuses on algorithmic and complexity aspects arising in the
development of efficient randomized solutions to computationally difficult
problems. It aims, in particular, at fostering cooperation among
practitioners and theoreticians and among algorithmic and complexity
researchers of the field. RANDOM'98, to be held at the Polythechnical
University of Catalonia, Barcelona, Spain on October 8-10, 1998, is the
second in the series after Bologna.

TOPICS

Papers are solicited in all research areas related to randomization and
approximation, including, but not limited to:
* design and analysis of randomized algorithms
* randomized complexity
* de-randomization techniques
* design and analysis of approximation algorithms
* complexity of approximation problems
* parallel and network algorithms
* other applications of randomness

Workshop on
Applied Linear Algebra
in honor of
Ludwig Elsner
January 21-23, 1999.

Ludwig Elsner has made many important mathematical contributions, in
particular to the areas of Linear Algebra and Numerical Analysis.
He will celebrate his 60th birthday in January 1999.
To honor his mathematical work, the Mathematics Department
of Universitaet Bielefeld and the Sonderforschungsbereich 343
will organize this workshop which will cover all areas
of matrix theory, ranging from core linear algebra to numerical
linear algebra.

SIAM and the Organizing Committee for the Fifth SIAM Conference
on Applications of Dynamical Systems are pleased to announce
that the conference Call for Papers is now available on the
Web. To know more about the meeting themes, invited plenary
speakers, minisymposia, deadlines for submission of
minisymposium proposals and contributed abstracts, please visit

The Technical University Braunschweig will establish a
"Graduiertenkolleg"

Interaction of Structure and Fluid

as of 1st October 1998. The "Graduiertenkolleg" is supported by the
German Research Council (link)(DFG), the State of Lower Saxony and the
Technical University Braunschweig. It will offer opportunity for
theoretical-numerical research leading to a doctoral degree in the
interdisciplinary areas of interaction of elastic structures with fluids
and gases as well as acoustic-structure coupling.

Further information on the "Graduiertenkolleg" may be found by pointing
your browser at http://www.tu-bs.de/grkwsf.

Applications are invited for

10 doctoral stipends with max. duration of 2 years and
1 post-doc stipend with a max. duration of 2 years.

Stipends are awarded according to the guidelines of the DFG.
Applications or inquiries should be sent to